all of my life,
in every season,
You are still God,
i have a reason to sing,
i have a reason to worship

Friday, August 31, 2012

Obsessed

What is it about our culture that makes us grab hold of something until it consumes and fills up all of our thoughts and overflows into our actions? The moment when something innately good begins to carry more weight than it should, when a number 7 priority begins to work its way up the ladder to the number 1 spot.

Fact: I have had a shopping obsession. I used to have a job that paid too much money & I liked to spend it on dresses. I'm not sure why I love dresses so much, maybe its the Georgia debutante in me (kidding, sort of), but I LOVE dresses. Recently, I decided to get rid of most of my closet to raise money for Africa & I struggled letting go of the dresses. Its easy to say "I'll sell my stuff and move to Africa" but actually doing it... not so easy.

This isn't actually my closet. Though if it was, I'm betting Annie would be the first to borrow that sequined number in the middle.

It's crazy to think about the amount of time and energy and money we spend on politics, fitness routines, diet fads, shopping, you name it, things that may be important, things that may be beneficial, but things that easily distract us from the big picture.I've had hour long conversations with friends about food trends & workouts and while those things aren't bad, I can't help but wonder how much energy or brain space we've used and for what? To determine whether or not quinoa is actually a superfood? It's absolutely ridiculous. Obsessions over politics, arguments over which side is right and why the other side is wrong, I've done it too many times to count. It's wise to be aware of fitness and health and politics and culturally relevant topics, but ultimately they crumble in light of eternity.What if we shifted our energy away from our obsession with fill in the blank and fixed our conversations and thoughts on Jesus? What if we spent the time and money used to support our obsession on serving people? What kind of impact would it have on our culture? I'm not saying we should ignore all of those things, thats not realistic, but maybe just get better at putting them and keeping them in their place.We are created to be passionate people with fixed eyes. The issue is when our eyes become fixed on things rather than on the Creator. When the day comes for me to stand before my God and be accountable for my time, I want to have lived with purpose, to have invested in things worthwhile, to have served well, to have obsessed over establishing His kingdom on earth.

Heb 12:2 - Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.